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Mexico
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"Axis Ability" [Axis Habilidad], 2001 acrylic on canvas 39 1/2 x 51 1/2 in. (100 x 131 cm.), dressed with mahogany-colored wood strips Selected for inclusion in a juried biennial in the US. It depicts a scene outside an urban home near the artist's Guadalajara Mexico studio and residence, where a family paused on its Sunday outing during the rainy season so the father could climb a tree to pilfer some fruit. A cloud appearing in the form of a pre-conquista Chac Mool (associated with the Aztec rain god Tlaloc, as well as with sacrificial rites) gave rise to the title, which is an attempt at referring to the ability of contemporary life to connect with rituals and other forms of ancestral life, much in the same way as the mythical notion of the sacred tree functions to connect the unseen --the underworld (through its roots) and the heavens (through its leaves)-- with the everyday, visible world (its trunk). The problematic idea of progeny, family and of life-and-death relationships (for example, the fruit, which must die to fulfill its function and give new life to reproduction from its seed) is meant to connect actual time with the past, ancestors with their descendants. The graffiti, while drawn from real, present-day sources, was of interest as a reference to the uncontrolled "juice" of life impulses and of expressive ones (perhaps in the Freudian sense of the "return of the repressed," of expressive urges that cannot be quashed by even the harshest repressive laws or restrictions), and how such impulses contest the structures and limits of propriety and institutions (in this case, architecturally and domestically, as well as in terms of property ownership).
Print:Giclee on Fine Art Paper
Size:10 W x 8 H x 0.1 D in
Size with Frame:15.25 W x 13.25 H x 1.2 D in
Frame:White
Ready to Hang:Yes
Packaging:Ships in a Box
Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.
Handling:Ships in a box. Art prints are packaged and shipped by our printing partner.
Ships From:Printing facility in California.
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Mexico
Dale Kaplan (b. 1956) grew up in a rural town near Boston MA, attending public schools, and later studied at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn NY and Cornell University in Ithaca NY (BFA ‘81). He was awarded the MCC (Massachusetts Cultural Council) Artist’s Grant in 2000, in recognition of artistic excellence in Painting. In the late 1980s he established a studio in Guadalajara and has divided his life and work between Mexico and the U.S. ever since. Exhibiting professionally in both countries, as well as in Canada, his works are in numerous private collections. Also active as an art critic, essayist and translator, since 1999 Kaplan has published original writing in several Spanish-language newspapers, magazines and online sites, and has various book credits as a translator. His texts, photographic essays, and reproductions of his paintings and graphic works, have appeared in numerous publications, as well as on book and CD covers, and his work has been included in historical exhibitions and published anthologies focused on the art produced in the Mexican state of Jalisco. In both imagery and texts, Kaplan’s work takes to heart Noam Chomsky’s definition of the responsibility of the intellectual: “to tell the truth and expose lies.” ______________________________________ARTIST'S STATEMENT_________________________ The driving force behind my artmaking is the conviction that painting has as much or more potential for intellectual expression as that which is generally attributed only to verbal language. My interest in critical thought about sociocultural, political, and power relationships, as well as in occasionally using satire and art-historical references to take some air out of the overblown types who rule with a "whim of iron"—are essentially the same as they were before coming to Mexico, and my frequent forays into language play and playing with imagery are the kinds of play I take seriously. In Mexico, though, like on the African plains, one plays, like small game, with one eye out for large predators who are always lurking just off to the side. Journalism can be a most dangerous game in this country, as can be practicing social critique or just openly expressing one's honest opinion. In life, risks must be taken, though, despite dubious "risk-reward" ratios. Many of my works have a backstory related to in-depth research on topics of concern to me, sometimes utilizing investigative techniques such as Freedom of Information requests.
Artist featured by Saatchi Art in a collection
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